netmbng

Q: Guest user not working at all (Mavericks Ver.10.9.4)

I am currently using a 2011 MacBook Pro running OS X Mavericks Version 10.9.4.

 

I'm having an annoying problem regarding the guest user, I just can't seem to get it to work. I got to User and Groups in the System Preferences, check the box "Allow guests to log in to this computer" and it doesn't work. I've tried turning it off, restarting my computer, then turning it back on and yet the guest account still doesn't show up in the login page or in the faster user switching menu. It's crazy how there's barely any information on how to fix this. I've searched google and the only results are how to enable guest user or how to get rid of it, nothing pops up on that the guest user is not working so I've come to the Mac community to see if I can get any help here. I have updated everything in my software update by the way.

MacBook Pro, OS X Mavericks (10.9.4)

Posted on Jul 26, 2014 1:22 AM

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Q: Guest user not working at all (Mavericks Ver.10.9.4)

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  • by qqgjcnfnmk,

    qqgjcnfnmk qqgjcnfnmk Jul 26, 2014 1:28 AM in response to netmbng
    Level 1 (85 points)
    Jul 26, 2014 1:28 AM in response to netmbng

    Is automatic login set to 'Off'?

    Screen Shot 2014-07-26 at 4.26.55 AM.png

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jul 26, 2014 8:08 AM in response to netmbng
    Level 10 (207,926 points)
    Applications
    Jul 26, 2014 8:08 AM in response to netmbng

    If you’ve activated “Find My Mac” or FileVault in OS X 10.7 or later, then you can’t enable the Guest account.

  • by netmbng,

    netmbng netmbng Jul 26, 2014 2:20 PM in response to qqgjcnfnmk
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 26, 2014 2:20 PM in response to qqgjcnfnmk

    Yes, it is set to off and it won't let me change if. I choose Guest User for the automatic login but it ends up going back to off

  • by netmbng,

    netmbng netmbng Jul 27, 2014 10:50 PM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 27, 2014 10:50 PM in response to Linc Davis

    Neither the Find my Mac and the FileVault are on

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jul 27, 2014 11:08 PM in response to netmbng
    Level 10 (207,926 points)
    Applications
    Jul 27, 2014 11:08 PM in response to netmbng

    This procedure is a diagnostic test. It makes no changes to your data.

    Please triple-click anywhere in the line below on this page to select it:

    dscl . -list /Users | grep Guest | pbcopy

    Copy the selected text to the Clipboard by pressing the key combination command-C.

    Launch the built-in Terminal application in any of the following ways:

    ☞ Enter the first few letters of its name into a Spotlight search. Select it in the results (it should be at the top.)

    ☞ In the Finder, select Go Utilities from the menu bar, or press the key combination shift-command-U. The application is in the folder that opens.

    ☞ Open LaunchPad. Click Utilities, then Terminal in the icon grid.

    Paste into the Terminal window by pressing the key combination command-V. I've tested these instructions only with the Safari web browser. If you use another browser, you may have to press the return key after pasting.

    Wait for a new line ending in a dollar sign ($) to appear below what you entered.

    The output of the command will be automatically copied to the Clipboard. If the command produced no output, the Clipboard will be empty. Paste into a reply to this message.

    The Terminal window doesn't show the output. Please don't copy anything from there.

    If any personal information appears in the output, anonymize before posting.

  • by netmbng,

    netmbng netmbng Jul 28, 2014 1:48 PM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 28, 2014 1:48 PM in response to Linc Davis

    Ok I did everything you said and this what was copied to my clipboard: Guest1.

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jul 28, 2014 3:19 PM in response to netmbng
    Level 10 (207,926 points)
    Applications
    Jul 28, 2014 3:19 PM in response to netmbng

    Then the guest account was deleted, and another one created with a different name. Do you know when that happened, and what backups do you have?

  • by netmbng,

    netmbng netmbng Jul 30, 2014 1:25 PM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 30, 2014 1:25 PM in response to Linc Davis

    The guest account was deleted? I don't believe I've ever done that, or I probably did it unknowingly so I don't know when that happened. And by backups do you mean Time Machine or anything because I don't think I've ever created a backup

  • by Linc Davis,

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jul 30, 2014 1:57 PM in response to netmbng
    Level 10 (207,926 points)
    Applications
    Jul 30, 2014 1:57 PM in response to netmbng

    I don't think I've ever created a backup

    Then you need to create one now.

     

    Mac Basics: Time Machine backs up your Mac

  • by netmbng,

    netmbng netmbng Jul 31, 2014 2:50 PM in response to Linc Davis
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Jul 31, 2014 2:50 PM in response to Linc Davis

    Ok, thanks for telling me that, but do you know how I can fix my guest account problem?

  • by Linc Davis,Helpful

    Linc Davis Linc Davis Jul 31, 2014 2:56 PM in response to netmbng
    Level 10 (207,926 points)
    Applications
    Jul 31, 2014 2:56 PM in response to netmbng

    If you don't already have a current backup, back up all data. There are ways to back up a computer that isn't fully functional. Ask if you need guidance. You can skip this step if you don't care about the data that hasn't been backed up.

    Reinstall the OS.* Your data should be unaffected unless something goes wrong. If the system was upgraded from an older version of OS X, you may need the Apple ID and password you used.

    If you use FileVault 2, then before running the Installer you must launch Disk Utility and select the icon of the FileVault startup volume ("Macintosh HD," unless you gave it a different name.) It will be nested below another icon with the same name. Click the Unlock button in the toolbar and enter your login password when prompted. Then quit Disk Utility to be returned to the main Recovery screen.

    If you installed the Java runtime distributed by Apple and still need it, you'll have to reinstall it. The same goes for Xcode. All other data will be preserved.

    *The linked support article refers to OS X 10.9 ("Mavericks"), but the procedure is the same for OS X 10.7 ("Lion") and later.

  • by wkdewey,

    wkdewey wkdewey Mar 2, 2016 1:05 PM in response to qqgjcnfnmk
    Level 1 (0 points)
    Mar 2, 2016 1:05 PM in response to qqgjcnfnmk

    I had this problem too, what fixed it for me was just switching "Display login window as:" to "List of users" instead of "Name and password".